Monsters of the Mind
by GrandNinjaMasterRen
Summary: Mikasa knew her brother wasn't all there. Now he's staying at a mental hospital for incurable cases. Real world AU where the events of the anime are a hallucination.
1. Chapter 1

Mikasa knew from the beginning that her brother was different. He mentioned things that never happened as fact, shouted about 'the Titans', and claimed to want to be a member of 'the Scout Regiment'. He was always lost in the world of his own making. She could hear people whispering about 'that poor Eren, the boy is touched in the head.' They said he was a danger to himself and others.

Eren was her baby brother! Hers! And their parents wanted to send him away! Mikasa was mad and she had no qualms with expressing her cold rage.

"It's only for a little while, Mikasa." Her mother said, "Only for a little while, Eren will be home before you notice he's gone." Eren grinned at Mikasa.

"You're always so overprotective, Mikasa. I'll be fine. I'm not a little kid"

Far too soon for Mikasa's liking, they arrived at the facility Eren had been referred to. They were greeted by a tall, blond man with large eyebrows wearing a lab coat that had a name tag that read: Dr. Erwin Smith.

"Commander Erwin, Sir!" Eren shouted, giving the man an odd salute, right fist over his heart, left tucked behind his back. Dr. Smith's eyebrows raised a bit.

"At ease, soldier." Dr. Smith replied. Eren returned to his former position.

"You'll take care of him, right?" His mother asked worriedly, "You can make him better and then he can come home?"

"Ma'am, I'm afraid that if you've been referred to here it's because, well, it's because he won't be able to function safely in society."

"So, my baby has to live in the looney bin?" The woman sobbed. She wrapped her arms around Eren, pulling him to her chest.

"Ma'am, the patients here aren't looneys. They just have different needs. Your son needs special attention, more so than most children. Although he will have to live here, you aren't barred from visiting or sending mail." Dr. Smith comforted. Mikasa glared at the man.

"Eren!" Mikasa cried, grabbing his hand. Eren gave his sister's hand a reassuring squeeze.

"Don't worry, Mikasa. I'll be fine. Commander Erwin is here after all." Eren pulled his hand away.

"Right. Well, Eren, we've run out of empty rooms, so you're going to have to share. If you'll just say goodbye to your family and then pick up your bag and follow me." Eren eagerly said his goodbyes and trotted off after Dr. Smith.

"Now, Eren, your roommate might be a bit difficult for you to get along with. He doesn't care for messes and is very neat, so it would be helpful if you kept your belongings tidy." Dr. Smith explained.

"Yessir, Commander!" The doctor walked to a door and knocked.

"Levi? Are you there?" About a minute passed before the door opened revealing a slight, dark-haired, bored-looking, young man.

"Captain Levi, Sir!" Eren shouted, giving the man the same salute he had given Dr. Smith. Levi looked distinctly uncomfortable.

"What's going on, Erwin? Why are you and the brat here? Who is the brat? Why did he call me captain? What is he doing?" Levi asked in monotone.

"In order: You're getting a roommate. To get him settled. Your roommate. You've been promoted from lieutenant at some point. Saluting you." Dr. Smith said easily. Levi fiddled with his long sleeves.

"But my room is clean. He'll make it filthy and I'll have to clean even more." Levi protested, fighting back tears.

"I'll help clean, Captain Levi, Sir!" Eren shouted.

"Levi, we don't have enough rooms here for you to continue to have your own. You- "

"Alright, fine. The shitty brat can stay." Levi acquiesced. Levi showed Eren into the room and began to explain the rules.


	2. Chapter 2

Levi hated sharing. People were disgusting creatures, creating piles of filth wherever they went. His new roommate was neater than most, but it still wasn't clean enough.

"Captain Levi, Sir! I finished sweeping." Eren declared. Levi spared the floor a glance.

"It's absolutely filthy, brat. Clean it again." Eren saluted and restarted his chore. Levi grimaced, then picked up some dirty laundry that Eren had left out. He carried it to the hamper as quickly as he could, and walked to the bathroom sink to wash his hands.

Eren didn't notice something was wrong until after he had swept the room twice over. Levi, who had been dusting the bookshelves, wasn't there. Eren heard water running. He ran over to the bathroom.

Levi was bleeding in sink, but he didn't seem to notice. He just kept scrubbing his hands, rubbing the skin off along with the soap suds.

"Captain Levi!" Eren shouted. Levi didn't answer. His eyes were wide and unseeing. He had his teeth bared in a determined grimace.

"Captain Levi! Sir, You're hurt!"Eren cried. Dr. Smith appeared in the doorway.

"Eren, step back." Dr. Smith commanded. The boy complied. The doctor put a hand on Levi's shoulder.

"Levi, breathe. You're making a larger mess by bleeding all over the place." Levi flinched.

"Alright. Let's get some bandages on your hands. Private Jäger?"

"Sir!"

"The infirmary is down the hall, turn left, third door on the right. Bandages are kept in the top cabinet closest to the door. Bring four of them here." Eren saluted.

"Yes, Sir!"

After Levi's hands had been bandaged, he reviewed Eren's sweeping, and, to the fifteen-year-old's delight, deemed it satisfactory. Dr. Smith made clear his plan to introduce Eren to the rest of the patients saying,

"It would be better to inform everyone tomorrow morning of our newest… member."


	3. Chapter 3

One Month Previously:

Mikasa and Eren walked down the school hallway. It was lunchtime and the hall was crowded.

"Mikasa!" She turned and saw Annie, the blonde, new girl, who sat next to her in German class.  
Mikasa hurriedly dragged her brother over to her new friend, eager to introduce them. Eren growled at the girl.

"Did you think you could get away with that!?" Eren shouted, pushing Mikasa away and getting in between her and Annie.

"Eren!" Mikasa shouted. Annie backed away slowly.  
"Look, dude. I don't know what you're talking about." Annie said as though she were trying to calm a wild animal. Eren gave another growl and bit his own hand, drawing blood. Mikasa was frozen in place.  
Eren charged towards Annie. He punched her hard across the jaw, sending her, off balance, to the floor. He was on top of her in an instant, clawing at anything he could reach. Annie screamed and cried, but Eren was unrelenting. He slammed Annie's head repeatedly against the ground. She stopped struggling.

Now:

Eren hounded Dr. Smith's steps. The doctor smirked at bit at the pun he had made in his mind. "Eren, I'm about to introduce you to someone, okay?" Dr. Smith asked. He was a bit apprehensive about introducing Eren to Mike, but the boy had yet to lash out.  
"Yes, Sir." Eren mumbled glumly as they walked into the Common Room. Mike was curled up on a rug in front of the tv, that was displaying a cheerfully flickering fireplace.  
"Mike, this is Eren. Eren, that's Mike." Dr. Smith said evenly.  
Mike's eyes shot open and he approached the boy on all fours. He sniffed Eren carefully and was apparently satisfied by the scent because he crouched in a dog's play-bow, waggling his rear as though he had a tail. Eren, for his part seemed both intrigued and concerned, but he obligingly began to play fetch with Mike.  
"The full moon is tonight. He'll be back to normal tomorrow." Dr. Smith said to reassure Eren.  
Eren smiled hesitantly.  
"Are you sure Squad Leader Mike will be okay?" the boy asked. Eren then seemed to realize who he was talking to," I didn't mean any disrespect, Commander!"


End file.
